Curves
by Alba Raile
Summary: Rewrite of one of my previous stories. Charon pines for the mistress he could never have. Letting desire turn into something much stronger. T for language, currently. Liable to change as story develops. Prequel to Bumps.
1. Chapter 1

Thanks for all your positive messages about rewriting this story. I'll be adding a lot more information to their tale now that the kink meme character limit is no longer the constricting factor.

I'd love to know what you guys think and appreciate any feedback.

* * *

Before the war women had come in all shaped and sizes. dresses and skirts were filled out in appealing ways. Now 200 years on one size fits all and apart from height most females were the same, not slim but starved and bony. Lack of decent food and having to walk for miles at a time left them lacking in body fat. The lucky ones, most likely the mercs, were muscular but even that was a poor subsitutue for the womanly shape of pre war times.

Charon contemplated this as he walked behind his mistress, scanning the area.

Janet had came into his life like a bull in a china shop, if that was even the expression, time made him forget. Charon would put caps on the bull having more of an idea of what they were doing. She had practically crawled into Underworld, injured and bruised and passed out by the Chop Shop. Janet had then managed to purchase his contract from Azrukhal, 3 days after enquiring about the price. He could only assume she has been collecting the funds but thought it too personal to ask. She had called him 'sir' and screamed loudly and fainted when he shot Azrukhal. She was nothing like he was ever trained for.

Janet however had something he was very much use to, in the past, curves. She had recently 'been kicked out' of a vault meaning the hesitant steps that she took in front of him were still her first tasters of the wasteland . Her previous cushiony lifestyle had meant that she had to want for nothing and could eat rations on demand. She wasn't overweight but she had bends and curves in places that could keep a religious man distracted. Charon diverted his eyes to the skin tight vault suit. Skin tight, fuck. He held in a groan as they approached steps within the subway tunnel. Each step pulling the leather material over her back and thighs. He didn't understand how someone's ass could be held so tightly in place but still bounce. His eyes stayed at the appealing site following it at perfect eye level until she turned around to instruct him.

"Charon ?" She looked down at him innocently unaware of his previous thoughts. His eyes darted up to her face and he quickly cleared any signs of arousal his face might betray him with.

"Yes mistress ?"

"How long will it take to go back to underworld ?"

"2 days."

She nodded slowly with a pained sigh. Charon could see the exhaustion in her. Janet's inexperience resulted in a low stamina and lack of confidence in weaponry.

"Okay, we can rest here for the night" she pointed towards the maintenance room of the metro they had discovered at the top of the steps.

One entrance or exit, which could lock Charon approved. She had clearly been absorbing the information he passed along as they toured the Wasteland.

Charon wouldn't admit it but watching his mistress get ready to sleep was something of a guilty pleasure. She would peel herself out of her suit and be left with a skimpy undershirt and shorts. She would twist her hair on top of her head to get it out of the way allowing her long neck to come into view. She often spoke of letting Snowflake cut her hair, Charon would grumble a response. It was logical, her long hair had become a hazard often blocking her view or sticking to her as the heat increased, but he didn't want it cut. Long hair was such a rarity now as most females opted to cut it short with blunt objects. She could cut it once Charon had got to run his hands through it or use it to keep her close to him during certain physical activities. Charon smirked unintentionally at the mental image.

"Was that a smile ?" she gasped.

"No."

Janet laughed at him and rolled her eyes "Suuuuure."

She crawled in front of him flopping ungracefully with exhaustion onto an abandoned mattress. She stretched her limbs and groaned at the comfort the shabby material provided.

"Good night Charon." she smiled up at him , quite beautifully unaware of the effect it had on him, and then closed her eyes to sleep. She had no idea the things she made him feel. Intense heat and a strong desire. Janet probably felt no need to cover up out of ignorance, probably believing the Wasteland tale of ghouls being unfunctional down there. They were all in working order just nobody came close to check.

His contract prevented him more than his appearance did. To become involved with a contract holder was limited to orders and he doubted she would order him to please her. So any emotion she evoked was unacted on, could never be acted on.

Charon looked at her drowsy figure. She was tiny for the Wasteland, especially in comparision to him. Janet blamed it on the small walls of the vault not letting her grow. This height only made him more protective of her. Charon believed her to be beautiful. Her pale unscarred face displayed the kindness she gave to people, including himself. Charon scoffed to himself as he took her in. She was smart, beautiful and kind and then there was him, none of the above. He took off his leather gloves letting his fingers stretch. He held his hand out in front of her. Smooth and rough. Untainted and scarred. Nothing would ever happen between them.

Maybe in another life time, he thought.


	2. Uncomfortable

Thanks guys for the quick reviews :D I love knowing what you think.

* * *

Since her arrival the smoothskin had changed Underworld.

Her scrap metal fixed the long awaited air conditioning, ghouls no longer had to sit in unnecessary heat and what passed through the vents could now pass for relatively fresh air. Janet had also on her way around the wasteland passed word about Carol's business and Snowflake's haircuts which brought new business to Underworld and a steady flow of caps, which could now be passed to Quinn for supplies of better quality.

To top all of that off, she had freed him from Azrukhal. He was finally given some freedom, more than he could ever remember having in his existence.

Charon leaned on the barrier at Carol's place staring across at the ninth circle door. The place, for him, was a reminder of horror and depression. Over a century Charon had spent in the same place doing the bidding of an evil bastard. Now it belonged to Greta who had extended Carol's business to include a food and drink bar. Charon lit up a cigarette and quite contently watched as everyone went out their business. There was still some fear held towards him but at least now they knew he was less likely to be ordered to kill them. His attention turned to the corner of Underworld as a soft giggling reached his ear. He looked down with a smirk to find his smoothskin helping, or trying to help, Patchwork up from the floor.

"Get up!" she giggled placing her arm around his waist, Janet gave the ghoul a quick tug which had brought him up slightly until Patchwork hiccupped and dragged the smoothskin back down to the floor with him. She let out an oof as she was temporarily winded then proceed to fill the halls with her loud laughing.

Charon scowled as he watched the scene. She was touching Patchwork. She didn't have a problem with ghouls, which he had previously known. He just didn't realise how comfortable she was with them or him for that matter.

Patchwork dragged Janet down one last time this time instead of laughter she gave a small yelp of pain. Charon, with a sigh, stomped down the stairs throwing the butt of his cigarette. Cerberus gave an offensive gesture, as he could for a robot, as he cleaned the small mess. Charon strode over to the fallen heap and promptly picked both up in one arm each, glaring at Patchwork.

"I didn't do nothing!" Patchwork shouted defensively as he wriggled out of his grip and took a few drunken steps back.

"Did to!" Janet laughed.

Patchwork gave a small sleepy smile "You...you're funny!"

He stumbled away, tripping over some rubble. Janet was the only one to laugh. Every other ghoul was much use to it.

Charon looked down towards her and the smoothskin just gave him a wide grin. He realised that he still had his arm around her. He grumbled and quickly removed it. The proximity made him uncomfortable, he was unsure of what to do in such a situation. He barely knew what to say to her never mind act around her. Charon, now extremely uncomfortable, excused himself and left for the feral part of the museum.

Charon could do solitude.

He kicked a burnt out book on arrival and smirked in amusement as it hit a feral ghoul square in the chest. The feral gave him a growl which Charon returned louder and more intense.

The feral backed up and went limping behind a book case. He still pulled out his shotgun and took it out anyway. Target practice he called it. Better to put them out of their misery.

He'd been with Janet for 3 months now and he had to admit she was his favorite employer. She has shown him kindness and patience. She put up with his moments of anger and preference to stay silent. She was the calm to his aggression and the charisma to his shot gun diplomacy. Everything to do with him had nothing to do with her. To make the unlikely duo even more unlikely, he liked her. He honest to god liked her and it frustrated him. Charon had spent too long suppressing his emotions and not having to deal with people and the baggage that came with them.

He didn't know how to talk to people. He didn't know how to show people that he cared, especially her. He could take countless bullets and fire them in return but when she asks him to sit next to him at Gob's, he is clueless.

The most he could do in terms of romance would be to take out someone for her and god knows how you do that, romantically. 'I broke his neck so I didn't get blood on the floor'. Pathetic.

Charon groaned and sat up on a fallen bookcase and tossed his knife around. His own situation frustrated him and would probably amuse others. A large and ruined ghoul hung up on a small and beautiful smoothskin, like that could happen. He vaguely remembered a similar pre-war story. In the end Prince 'fucking' Charming returned to his handsome self and they lived happily fucking ever after. Charon snorted the best ending in the Wasteland would be getting put down before you realise what a shitty life you're about to experience.

"Charon?" a small voice echoed the silent library.

Janet had just popped her around the door and her voice had brought the attention of the ferals who ran towards her. Charon quickly withdrew his shotgun and took out every one that was stupid enough to go close to her. When it was all clear he made his way to her.

She was crouched on the ground with her arms up and hands covering her ears.

"Janet?" He spoke.

She looked up expectantly and gave him a wide smile that confused him more. She shouldn't smile at him like that.

"That was pretty stupid huh?"

Charon held out his arm and she gripped on to it tightly as he picked her up.

"You've done worse."

He turned her to face the door and began to leave for the safer part of Underworld. He should have known she would follow him.

She turned to reply and there it was that smile again. He didn't understand. He was going to have to take her to Carols. Carol, and her motherly instinct, could see a hint from a mile off. Maybe that was why she kept hitting his side. The woman had pointy elbows.

"At least I have you."

Charon sighed.

"Just be cautious" he paused "please."

It was the best he could manage, honestly.


	3. Lessons

"I'm sorry" she spoke quietly and turned her gaze to the floor with guilt.

"There will be alot more, let's go."

Charon tugged slightly at her shoulder but instead of moving Janet's eyes lit up and shot up to his face.

"Will you show me how to shoot them ?" she asked excitedly.

Charon observed the carnage from the previous attack and raised an eyebrow.

"You want to stay here ?"

She nodded vigorously with a childish grin "Just show me how to hit them ! You know I'm not a great shot. What if we were ever separated ? How would I survive ?"

Charon thought about it, it was a reasonable enough request. Especially from someone who hadn't been brought up in the wasteland. He nodded at her and she gave him one of her signature wide smiles, which created a pit in Charons stomach, he was yet to understand why she would look at someone as ruined as him like that. Maybe she was too nice, this was one employer who's back he had to watch. She trusted too easily.

He placed a finger on his lips and tilted his head towards the stairs. Her mouth formed an o understanding his request then she nodded to follow him.

Both crept quietly up the stairs. Charon created barely any noise and Janet followed with a small squeaking noise. Charon turned to her with a glare.

"It's my shoes !" she whispered.

Charon rolled his eyes and led them to a room filled with a cage and torn pre war posters. Charon raised his hand and dropped it requesting that she crouch down. When she did he crouched behind her and put his gun into her hands while placing his hands over hers.

He enjoyed the contact. She was soft and her minuscule hands fit well into the curve of his palms.

"I don't know what to do" she whispered.

Charon gave her a blank look, which meant wait, the smoothskin almost laughed at understanding it. She was often given it outside of doors and buildings.

A feral ghoul then limped into view. Charon lightly pushed against her hands bringing the gun straight with her face.

"When it comes into view. Shoot." he said against her ear.

She giggled lightly at the sensation of someone against her neck. He lightly tapped her fingers, making her concentrate, as the feral came into view.

She quickly panicked and her heart began to hammer loudly in her chest. She took a deep breath faking calmness. Even Charon didn't have that good hearing.

Relax" he muttered, apparently he did.

The feral ghoul limped into perfect alignment with the gun.

"Go" Charon spoke in her ear.

She pressed against the trigger with her eyes squeezed shut. She opened them quickly to find she had took out the ghouls right leg. It slumped to the ground with a growl. The backlash Janet felt from the shotgun was phonemonal. She assumed she would have been winded if Charon hadn't been holding it away from her chest, how strong did someone have to be to fire this themself. A few more ferals began running from the other side and Charon pivoted her body around to the right feral.

"Shoot!" he swung her around to the left. "Shoot !"

They did this four more times until silence filled the halls.

The smoothskin let out an excited breath and looked up expectantly at Charon.

"Can I get a gun ?"

Charon snorted.

"Yes . I'd suggest an assault rifle or sub machine something that fires fast."

She laughed loudly catching his joke.

"So I can atleast get one bullet in the right place."

"Something like that."

He smirked down at her and pulled Janet up to got to her feet.

"You'll be firing fine in no time."

Janet let out an excited giggle.

"I only had a bat when I came out ! I had to hit everything away."

Charon walked down the stairs leading to the main part of Underworld.

"You must have been a terrifying sight."

Janet caught Charon's smirk.

"Ha-freaking-Ha!" she mocked "I still made it here alive."

"If I remember right I had to pull you out of the trenches."

"Whatever."

Charon smirked remembering their first meeting. Glad that Azrukhal had given him his first smoking break in months at that moment.

"Will you keep teaching me stuff ?" Janet asked hopefully.

She squeezed Charon's arm giving him a wide smile.

"Yes, little one. I will."

Charon wondered how his life had ever went from intimidating body guard to a wasteland teacher. Maybe some personal time was exactly what they needed together. Teaching a smoothskin how to fire a gun was about as close to a date or romance as Charon could manage.


	4. Revelation

Charon hadn't realised how much the smoothskin had meant to him till she went into that god damn simulator. She lay there, unblinking, stress levels at extreme and it honestly panicked him. He smacked on the glass, he tried to hack the terminal and eventually just sat at the base until she was done. He wasn't letting her do anything else like this. Hours later when the pod began to hiss. His heart began to thump as he heard her first gasp.

"Charon?"

He went to her side expecting her to need something. Instead she grabbed him clutching on to his shoulders and sobbing.

"I had to kill them all, he was torturing them."

Charon wasn't an expert on hugging but he felt he should do something more than just stand there. So he lifted her out of the pod and let her clutch at him, he wrapped his arms around her waist and put his head against hers.

"It was all you could do."

Her eyelashes had water drips between them which fell down her cheeks. Charon yet again thinking it was the right thing to do placed his finger on them and wiped them away.

"Janet ?" a male spoke.

Both turned to the new voice and realised the intimacy of their position.

He was the father. He finally got to do the right thing and not be awkward about it and he shows up. At that point Charon didn't care how long they had been looking for him, he could come back later. He dropped her to her feet and she ran to her father. Charon smirked as he saw how happy she was.

* * *

If Charon thought he had been in awkward positions before he had never anticipated this one. He was helping Janet and her fathers team at the memorial when her father James approached him.

"How long have you and Janet travelled for ?"

"10 months."

"You taught her how to fight ?"

James had seen his daughter take out raiders on the way here and would have been impressed if he hadn't been panicking the whole time.

Charon nodded. Honestly without him she would probably be dead by now, a thought Charon didn't like.

"Are you two involved ?"

"We fight together"

"Oh. I meant romantically."

Charon didn't have a response. He froze and honestly didn't know whaf to say. So he switched to the only thing he social answer he really knew.

"Talk to Janet."

Luckily at that point she appeared and when she was asked the question she answered as awkwardly as Charon had.

"Oh my god Dad. You can't just go about asking people that !"

Charon was amused when he felt her small hands on his back and she practically pushed them both out of the conversation. When they were both crouched in the small tunnels, well Charon crouched she was slightly bent over. Charon didn't mind the view that provided, she apologised.

"I'm sorry he asked you that. I know you're not much of a people person so god know how awkward that would have been."

Charon scoffed. "Im not exactly you, I don't have something to say to everyone."

Her laugh echoed along the pipes.

"I'm just talented at talking."

Charon paused. "I'm a you person."

Janet gasped and then smiled. "That's one of the nicest things anyone has ever said to me."

Charon did a bold thing and placed his hand on her cheek. To his surprise and pleasure she continued to smile and placed his hand on top of hers.

"I'm a you person too."

If it was a day for brave things Charon thought he should be brave enough to do the next thing. Slowly he placed her head in front of hers and gave s brief kiss his lips against hers. It was light but lingered.

When he pulled back she stared at him intensely with a small smile until she was distracted by a humming noise.

"What are those Charon ?"

"Vertibirds. Move."

If you asked Charon a year ago if he had a heart he would have said no, but that day he was pretty sure it broke. There was nothing like seeing the person you love break down and you can't do anything about it. There was nothing like knowing you had let them down. James had sacrificed his life to prevent the Enclave, who had attacked at the base in the vertibirds, from getting at the purifier.

Janet kneeled by the glass that contained her father and smacked her fists against it.

"The contact is to protect me, he is part of me, do something!"

The door was locked. The radiation was rising to a point even Janet's pip boy was ticking and the Enclave were trying to bash down one of the entrances.

"I can't."

The sheer look of disappointment that followed and the hollow stare she gave him really did break his heart. Her pip boy ticked furiously and he had to grab Janet by the waist and drag her to safety, kicking and screaming.

"I have to save him !"

He was pretty sure he was fired. He panicked in his head while they fought the left over enclave and when they finally made it into the Brotherhoods citadel. He watched her intensely. She hadn't cried yet. She simply nodded at everyone that spoke. She nodded at the scribe who told her about the terminal then left to read the information it had. When she sat down she attempted to read over and over again until a loud gasp came from her and tears began to fall. She hitched and grabbed at her chest.

"Get out." Charon growled to the scribes in the room. All left without a word.

She reached for Charon and he scooped her off the chair and sat on the floor with her. Him against the wall, her against his chest. She banged her fists against him in sheet frustration and continued to sob.

A scribe approached her asking if she was okay and Charon replied on her behalf by simply cocking his gun. If there was one thing he was good at it was keeping people away.


End file.
